WASHINGTON, 28 May 2006 — A very public month-long row between a member of the House of Representatives and a pro-Israel lobbyist speaking on behalf of AIPAC — the American lobby for Israel — has caused quite a stir on Capitol Hill.
The problem began when Congresswoman Betty McCollum, D-Minnesota, was one of two member of the House International Relations Committee who voted against the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act of 2006, an AIPAC-backed bill that imposes strong limitations on the American government’s ability to maintain relations with, or send aid to, the Palestinian Authority while it is led by Hamas.
On the House floor last month, McCollum said sections in the bill would make it difficult for the Administration and for nongovernmental organizations to provide humanitarian aid to the Palestinians. As a result, she said, the AIPAC-led bill would further destabilize the situation on the ground between Israelis and Palestinians “while fueling a humanitarian crisis.”
Although McCollum is viewed as a strong supporter of Israel, with excellent relations with her local Jewish community in St. Paul, she took exception to the bill because — as a Catholic who represents a heavily Catholic, liberal district, she said that assistance programs delivered by Catholic Relief Services in the West Bank and Gaza, as well as other NGO-run programs, could be “severely curtailed” by the bill.
Despite the fact the bill passed, 36-2, an AIPAC member called McCollum’s chief of staff, Bill Harper, saying: “On behalf of herself, the Jewish community, AIPAC and the voters of the Fourth District, Congresswoman McCollum’s support for terrorists will not be tolerated.” McCollum refused to be threatened. In response, she fired off a letter to the AIPAC’s executive director, Howard Kohr.
In the letter McCollum said: “During my nineteen years serving in elected office, including the past five years as a Member of Congress, never has my name and reputation been maligned or smeared as it was last week by a representative of AIPAC…” Although not named in McCollum’s letter, the Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune said the congresswoman was referring to Amy Rotenberg, a Minneapolis activist associated with AIPAC, who vehemently denies McCollum’s version of the events leading up to the letter. Harper, McCollum’s chief of staff, said he stands by his account of the conversation Rotenberg “one hundred percent.” McCollum wanted an apology. She then cut off all contacts with AIPAC, insisting: “…a formal, written apology is required.” After sending her letter to AIPAC, McCollum’s letter was published in the current issue of the New York Review of Books, accompanying a long essay by journalist Michael Massing who suggested that AIPAC often uses its considerable weight to intimidate or punish legislators for not supporting its agenda. McCollum’s letter has caused a stir on Capitol Hill, where Congressmen typically avoid public clashes with the powerful pro-Israel lobby. Significantly, not all American Jewish organizations backed the AIPAC-backed bill, either. Americans for Peace Now and the Israel Policy Forum publicly came out against it, saying it could destabilize American’s and Israel’s national security needs by not allowing the Bush Administration flexibility to deal with the Palestinian Authority and insisting the bill would deepen poverty and chaos in the territories.
The feud between McCollum and AIPAC then took another embarrassing turn for the lobby when Congressional Quarterly highlighted the fight in a front page, above-the-fold story.
After a month of tense exchanges, and realizing AIPAC had begun to garner very bad press, Rep. Gary Ackerman, D-N.Y., close to both AIPAC and McCollum, brokered a meeting last Wednesday. In a statement following the meeting, McCollum described it as “a polite conversation in which we agreed to disagree regarding the policy implications of H.R. 4681.” She “appreciated” Kohr’s acknowledgement of her pro-Israel record. “I expressed my resolve to continue to work with all pro-Israel groups who are committed to working respectfully and constructively for security, peace and human dignity in the Middle East,” McCollum said.
